Free to Fight
by OneWingedSeer
Summary: No one has ever really let her fight, let her prove herself. But no more. An AU story about Bulma that takes place 6 months after Trunks appears in the past. Rated T for violence in the final battle.
1. Flight to the Future

**The usual disclaimer. I don't own Dragonball Z or anything related.**

If you're coming here from "All Alone," welcome back, glad to have you. You can skip the summary, 'cause you know what's been going on.

If you're a new comer, here's the background of where we're starting as described in "All Alone." Don't worry, you don't _have to_ read it, although I'd love it if you did. But technically this story can stand on its own.

Trunks traveled back to the past and this time, Goku convinced him to stay there for a while and train instead of returning straight home. Young Bulma borrowed the time machine while he was at Goku's. After six months of watching everyone prepare for the androids, she decides to take matters into her own hands by traveling to the future herself with a few surprises from the past.

Enjoy!

* * *

_Free to fight…_

No one would stop her this time. No one would make her stay behind because she was a _girl_.

This time _she'd _show them!

The young scientist pushed back a stray, teal part of her bangs as her hands manipulated the controls with ease. It was a good thing that Goku and and that cute guy from the future had not come to check on the ship yet, it had taken her a long time to be sure she could operate the machine before she could even think of piloting it herself. Narrowing periwinkle eyes, she leaned over to check her calculations just one more time.

_Perfect. Looks like everything's ready to go,_ She thought to herself. If all worked according to plan then she should appear twenty years in the future in this exact spot. Goku's friend said that future her and him lived in the old Capsule Corporation Building, so that would be the best place to start.

She turned back to the front cockpit, taking one deep breath and pushing the final series of numbers for takeoff.

The sound of the engine began to rise from a low hum into a high pitched whine.

"Yeah, that seems to be all right," She muttered, as the whole cockpit rattled and the ship's many legs lifted from the green lawns of the Capsule Corp.

It was now or never. Time to find out if she had done her work perfectly yet again.

The sunlight sparkled and was magnified inside the cockpit, creating an almost tangible presence in the air. The whirring engine reached a peak of sound that could be felt rather than heard and the young woman began to lose her nerve, muttering, "Oh no. Oh no. What was I thinking? I can't do this. I should've had Goku go or something. Oh no. I don't like this. I don't like this at all."

She felt her hair, which she had straightened and kept at short length, floating every which way. The shifting gravity was nauseating and then add in the sound and the light and it was almost more than the poor scholar could handle.

She gripped her seat, red fingernails digging into the blue fabric of the cockpit chair. The lights blinded her, making copious amounts of tears drip down her face.

It was then, as she was tempted to hit the emergency shut-down, that she imagined she heard Vegeta's voice right beside her. Laughing at her weakness with his arrogant, raspy voice.

Blue eyebrows shot downward into a frown at lightning speed and she yelled to the empty cockpit, "I am not weak! I'll show you!"

With a dramatic show of stiffening resolve, she flipped the final switch, hearing her mother yell, "Bulma!" just as she was transported in a field of light to the future.


	2. Meeting Bulma

Bulma slumped back into the firm cushions of the pilot's chair, taking a deep sigh as gravity became a purely downward thing once again.

She smiled and thought triumphantly, _I really did it. No one else helped me. I really am going to get to do this on my own!_

With a happy little feeling of accomplishment, she flipped the switch to open the cockpit top and gathered up the capsules of her possessions, making sure that she had everything she would need.

"Trunks!"

Bulma jumped out of her seat at the scream, capsules scattering all over the floor as she shrieked and ducked under the side of the ship in terror.

"Trunks! You're home!" The oddly familiar voice called again.

Bulma frowned. _Is it… Could it be…?_

Despite herself, she slowly stood up to look at the welcoming committee standing there in the lawn of the future Capsule Corporation building.

There was a moment of stunned silence as both women looked at each other. Just that one moment of silence where both could not believe what they were seeing.

Then the dam broke and each exclaimed, "It's really you!" The young Bulma quickly climbed down out of the ship as the older woman rushed up from the front doors to meet her.

But one thing that had been learned over these hard times was logic in the face of adrenaline. The long haired woman asked, "Where's Trunks? Why didn't he come back with you?"

Bulma scowled. _What was it with her and this 'Trunks' guy?_ "How could I bring him with me if I don't even know who he is?!" She snapped back at her future self. "There wasn't exactly an instruction booklet on this thing, you know."

The older woman's eyes widened and her heart plummeted. "You don't know who Trunks is?" She whispered, mortified. Then her eyes widened even further, "Wait… Twenty years ago…"

Bulma was confused. _Why should I know this guy? What's so important about it?_ She opened her mouth to demand some answers, but didn't get a chance.

Her older self rounded on her, suddenly very angry. "What in the world do you think you're doing here?! You're supposed to be back with Vegeta!"

Out of all the things she ever expected to hear coming from her own mouth, this was most definitely _not_ one of them. She blinked two very large blue eyes. "_What?_"

"Do you have any idea at all what you're doing?" She butted in before Bulma had any chance to retort. "Do you even _know_ what happens to you in the future?"

Bulma instantly calmed down, drawn in by the lure of this information. "No. What happens?"

The older of the two calmed down as well. There was really no point in yelling at the other if she didn't know anything. She sighed and faked a cheery smile, "Let's go on in and get settled. Then we can figure out what to do about all of this.

A dark shape rocketed out of the open ship as the two oblivious women walked towards the future Capsule Corporation Building. Something that was obviously not human judging from its speed alone.

Bulma gasped, noticing that the wrecked and half collapsed fixer-upper was what had become of her beloved home. The once, tall green and flower bedecked lawn now was littered with pieces of the building beyond. _I didn't know that kid's world was this bad._ She felt a pang of sympathy flutter through her heart and understood perfectly well why he had been so thrilled to stay with the Sons.

As they walked the older woman said, "I have one thing to ask before I start answering your questions."

The short haired girl nodded. That seemed fair enough.

"If Trunks didn't come back…if you don't know who he is…" The older Bulma's eyes began to twinkle with suppressed tears. _What if something had gone wrong? What if her son wasn't coming back? What if he was…_ She shook her ponytail with the effort to block out that train of thought. "Then who was it that gave Goku the antidote and warned you guys about the androids?"

Bulma giggled. "Oh that guy? He's the really cute teenager that's training with Goku. We call him CK."

The older woman stopped mid-track and gasped, her eyes glowing with happiness. "CK? As in Calvin Klein?"

Bulma was thrown off by the sudden change in her older self, but answered, "Yeah, that's what he said his name was."

The laughter escaped as relief flooded through the future Bulma. _My smart boy. My smart, genius child._ She thought happily to herself. Her Trunks would have known letting past Bulma and Vegeta know his real name could change the future entirely in a negative manner. So, he had picked a name that those who knew him, would know who it was_. Calvin Klein…A brand of men's trunks. Amusing son, amusing._

"So, why did that young man let you take his time machine?" The future Bulma asked all too shrewdly.

The younger woman blushed, saying, "Well, he didn't exactly let me take it. Or at least not use it anyway." The two slipped through the main entrance and into a dark hallway that led to the kitchen. "You see, he was going to go train with Goku for a while, but the only way Goku convinced him to do it and not go immediately back to the future was to have me take the ship and learn how to program it to go back to a just a few hours after he left…" Bulma's eyes widened in shock as she realized. "Oops. I totally spaced that part. With all of the other modifications it slipped my mind."

Trunks' mother nodded, understandingly. Her son would not have wanted to abandon her here in the future, even if it meant gaining the power to meet the androids. His loyalty ran too deep. But if there was a way to do both, then he would have jumped at it. Secretly she was happy for him. For the first time in his life, her son would have gotten to experience life. Life without fear, life without death, life with love and hope. Even though she missed him terribly, Trunks' mother also wished he could stay back there and be happy.

The blue haired women sat down at the table and the longer haired one said, "There's a lot I can't tell you and before I know what I can, I've got to know. Why are you here?"


	3. Crazy Plans

Several hours and two home-cooked meals later, the woman from the future had gleaned most of the information she needed.

It sounded crazy, the older Bulma had to admit, but then again, most of her ideas sounded crazy and more than half of them worked out all right. "So let me get this straight," she said, chin resting upon her fisted fingers. "You found Dr. Gero's lab was in the mountains, then used a satellite you invented to hack into his computer network…"

So far it sounded right, if a little bare boned. Younger Bulma nodded.

"…then you downloaded the plans for all of the androids Dr. Gero had ever created and networked them together on the main computer in our lab…" the older woman moved to rest her forehead on her fist, covering her face. "And then you spent most of the next three months devising a device that would take out any of them with the push of a button and made four copies of it?" She sighed. "And better yet, you then ran off to the future in a stolen time machine so that no one could stop you from fighting for the first time in your life. Did I get it all?"

The younger woman said, quietly, "Yes…" It sounded insane when her other self put it _that_ way.

Older Bulma looked up, not mad at all. Rather, she was positively beaming. "Brilliant! Just brilliant. I'm so glad I thought of it. Man, I'm a genius." She winked at her younger counterpart and asked, "So, when do we start? I'm finally done with an android tracking device—"

The short-haired woman started and Bulma chuckled.

"What? You didn't think I've just been sitting on my butt these six months, did you? I've been preparing to take out those androids for as long as they've been around. So we can go whenever you're ready."

The younger Bulma jumped up out of her chair and put both hands splayed on the table, excitement crackling almost palpably in the kitchen. "Really?!"

This was just what she wanted all her life. To prove herself without anyone's help…well, getting help from herself didn't count.

The ponytail swung around as the other woman started towards the lab and gestured for her past self to follow.

They both gathered around the device. Its design was almost identical to the dragon radar that they had invented long ago, the smooth silver back and flat, green screen.

The inventor picked it up almost lovingly and explained, "I am pretty certain it works." She pushed the top and the screen lit up with the usual green graphing pattern and blinking dots. "But I'm kind of hoping that it doesn't."

The younger scientist raised one eyebrow in surprise. "Why would you build something and then hope that it doesn't work. That doesn't make any sense."

With a wince, Bulma clicked the top button several more times and pointed, "The androids that destroyed our world are known as 17 and 18, which it shows their location _here_," Bulma pointed at two dots with neat little numbers next to them.

That was just fine. But that wasn't the reason the inventor hoped this particular piece of equipment was malfunctioning. A reason that became all too clear to the young woman beside her as she leaned over to take a better look. It was at that moment that both fully understood what the data pointed to.

One gasped, horrified, and the other nodded resignedly, saying, "The problem it there are three _more_ dots after that. Five androids total."

The news hit the girl like a ton of bricks. "No!" young Bulma shrieked. "What are we going to do?"

The other woman narrowed her eyes, thinking. "Well, those three…Andriods 19, 16 and the unknown one haven't moved since I made the device, so I say we wipe them out first. If we're lucky then they either won't have been activated or are malfunctioning." She slammed a fist firmly into her other palm and growled, "Then we can go after the other two."

Younger Bulma was inspired by her future self's determination and courage, wanting to be like her someday. _Oh wait…_ she chuckled, smiling and saying, "Yeah, just give me a few minutes to grab all of my capsules and then I'm ready."

She expected Bulma to respond somehow, but the older woman was staring off into space, a slight and thoughtful frown accenting her far off gaze.

Running a hand through her short hair in confusion, she asked, "Are you all right?"

Ever so slowly, Bulma nodded and articulated, "Yeah…it was just strange." She turned her face to the younger woman, but somehow managed to still look through her.

"…it felt like…like…" She shook her head, ponytail whipping her shoulders and said, "I felt like I heard Trunks call my name…just now…"

The younger woman stood up and tilted her head, "Trunks? It couldn't be. He's back in the past with Goku and Gohan."

At the word Gohan, the older woman seemed to snap out of her trance. "Right," she said, starting back towards the entrance to the lab. "Let's get the androids, Bulma."

The younger woman smiled, saying, "Now that's more like it, Bulma."

The both laughed identically and went about preparing as fast as they could for whatever might happen.

But inside the heart of Trunks' mother, a silent plea went up to whatever deities could hear it.

_Hold on, Trunks. Hold on…_


	4. Dr Gero's Lab

Her long blue hair ruffled by the slipstream of the speeder, Bulma was admittedly rather amused at her younger self. _Was I really this moody?_ She thought as the other girl went through yet another cycle of fear and excitement. It was mind boggling how she could be so bi-polar emotion-wise and still survive.

Future Bulma nodded to show that she was listening to a story about Yamcha and picked up the Tracker to check their course through the northern mountains.

The girly voice continued babbling happily, "…and then, he didn't realize I was watching, of course. He never was all too observant, so that's not really all too big of a surprise. So, I saw him actually—"

The older woman drowned out her other self's voice, cutting her off mid-sentence with, "No! Why now? You haven't moved in weeks!"

The younger woman leaned in to take a look at the screen of the radar. It seemed 19 and 16 were still in the same spots, but that mysterious, unlabeled android… _Where is he?!_

Two sets of blue eyes looked at each other as if they could read each other's thoughts with their shared gaze. Had this unknown android sensed their approach? And if he was functional, were the other two?

The long haired woman frowned and asked, "Well, we'll tackle that mountain when we reach it. What's the range of the deactivating devices?"

The younger woman showed a slight blush and said, "I was only able to get them up to ten meters for sure. I'm sorry. I couldn't figure out a way to get the same results any further away."

"That should do," the older woman said and shrugged. The sound of the engine died down and both women looked at the immense metal doors set in the side of the largest mountain. That looked like the entrance to a lab if Bulma knew anything about laboratories.

"I'm ready," the feisty, young woman said, steeling her will for the fight ahead. "You?"

Unbuckling her seat belt, the older woman nodded in the same somber way as her son always managed. "Yes. And good. It looks like we don't even have to knock," she commented dryly, eyeing the devastating gap in one metal door of the entry.

Her younger counter part gulped, trying to keep courage in the face of such obvious strength.

"It's all right," she said, feeling weird having to comfort herself in this manner. "I'll go in first." When the short haired woman started to shake her head, the older version held up her hand and said, "No, really. It's better this way. If I were to die, you are twenty years younger than I am, which means we'd still have a chance to beat these androids." She smiled, blue eyes twinkling as she fluffed her ponytail. "I _know_ that I don't look it, but I'm actually nearly fifty years old."

The near thirty year old woman gaped. It should have been obvious, but somehow she didn't really realize until just now how old she was. _Fifty? How is she still moving? I thought that was old enough to be in an old folk's home. She's right, I have a better chance at being fast enough to kill the androids._

The logic of the older woman's statements was undeniable and before any words of protest could be conjured, she had grabbed one of the deactivators and slipped out of the car.

"Be careful!" the younger woman called to herself. And with one final peace sign of farewell, her older counterpart vanished through the broken door to face the immobile androids alone.


	5. Shadow From the Past

_Something just followed me in…I can sense it,_ Bulma thought, eyes darting from shadow to shadow as inconspicuously as she could manage. By separating her younger self from her, she had hoped to find out who the mysterious stranger was actually tracking. And she had gotten her answer. That someone seemed to be her.

It was there in the prickling of the skin upon her neck, the fluttering of her racing heart, the chills up her spine that had nothing to do with the lab she was in that told her of his attendance and spoke of a familiarity that put her on edge.

Pretending to ignore the presence, she walked steadily forward into the lab and right to the main computer. The lab itself did not look all too different from her own. The only notable differences being the five or so coffin looking devices, three of which were open and empty inside and a charred android sitting on the floor not too far from the desk. Bulma blanched and instinctively scooted further away from that end of the room.

Her blue eyes narrowed upon seeing two of the parallel units of 17 and 18. Those monsters that had killed Vegeta, had killed Gohan. She breathed, "So, this is where they were created…"

There was no time to lose. She did not want anything to happen to ruin her chance of destroying the other two that had not yet been activated. With a steely glint to her eyes, Bulma lifted the deactivator and pressed the single button on it once.

Once was all it took. She was well within the ten meters and immediately, she heard a sizzling sound from inside the coffins and a terrible stench rose in two identical streams from their tops.

It was pungent, making her eyes water. She hadn't anticipated the smell of burning plastic and kami knew what else, being so strong. No machine should be able to make such a smell. And it seemed Bulma was not the only one in the room overwhelmed by the sheer force of it.

She heard a small, but unmistakable _cough…_ from the shadows.

In that moment, all she had expected was proven. The flutters in her heart increased, the chills were constant and her whole body felt electrified and magically young again. It _was_ him.

There was only one person in the whole world had those effects on her, even all of these years later. She wasn't sure how he had done it, but she was absolutely positive he had managed the trip forward. _The man never could resist a chance to prove himself,_ Bulma thought to herself reminiscently.

Without turning away from the computer, Bulma smirked and whispered, "Hello, Vegeta."


	6. Strange Meeting

It was perhaps unwise to surprise a Saiyan warrior, but Bulma had practice in surviving the unwise.

Vegeta jumped out from the shadows and without further ado, slammed Bulma against the nearby desktop. Perhaps it was to scare her, perhaps only out of reflex, she didn't care either way as she bounced off the flat surface and landed on the floor with a gasp.

"Where are the other androids, _woman,_" he growled, folding his arms and walking towards her, white boots, silent on the hard floor. "The ones that you two are tracking next."

Bulma pushed a few long strands of blue hair out of her eyes and looked up, not in fear, simply understanding. She quietly asked, "So you know who I am, then?"

Vegeta hated the way she, a weak, human woman, looked at him, the strongest fighter in the universe, like that. He wanted to see her afraid, wanted her to understand that she should look up to him, should fear him. He reached down and pulled her long ponytail forcefully, so that the backs of her feet grazed the floor.

Still nothing. If anything the intensity of her gaze increased and she calmly stood up. "If you think that you can or ever have been able to break me, you honestly have a serious revelation coming up."

Vegeta growled. "I won't take your insolence, woman!" He grabbed her shirt, right at the neckline, pulling her towards his scowling face. To his surprise, she did not even look phased in the slightest. Quite the contrary. She was now smirking, blue eyes boring into his ebony ones with such intensity. He'd never seen eyes like _that_ before.

Vegeta was so stunned by her illogical behavior that he let go of her shirt and took a few steps backwards. In a second, he regretted his reaction. He had just shown her exactly what she had wanted to see. _Curse you, woman!_ What kind of a man—what kind of Prince, for that matter—did that make him?

As if the older woman could read his mind, she whispered, "Look, Vegeta. I don't want to hurt your pride. I am one of the few people who understand what it means to you. You are the last Prince of a noble race of fighters and that title comes with a whole set of rules." She stepped back a few paces and knelt to search through her handbag.

Vegeta sniffed, not sure what she was up to, but folding his arms to show that it didn't really matter to someone like him.

She continued, "I'm not asking you to give that up. After all, someone has to beat Goku, and I think one day it will be you."

_That _had gotten under his guard all right. Vegeta was completely taken back by this woman. Was she serious? Is she simply teasing me so I do not kill her? _No,_ he was sure that was not the case. _She has already shown that for some unexplainable reason, she does not fear me._

He wasn't sure what to think of her. In fact, it was the first time he remembered looking at a woman with any form of respect whatsoever.

She was…incredible. She really knew, really understood…and was the strongest woman he had ever known. Perhaps not physically, but in spirit, she had to be the strongest woman in the world.

The courageous woman stood back up, saying, "My name is Bulma, as I am sure you are vaguely aware of." She took a step forward, tracking device in one hand and deactivator in the other. "I don't expect you to take me with you. And I know you want to fight androids 17 and 18, so here are the tools you'll need."

She handed him the two devices, and he took them stunned. "Why are you helping me? Is this a trick?"

Bulma smiled and sighed, "No, silly. It's not a trick. It's symbiotically advantageous. You want to fight the androids and you are the strongest fighter in this world. I want the androids destroyed by any means possible." She pointed to the deactivator and explained, "That device has the power to do to the other two androids what it did to these two, but the catch is, only from within 10 meters." She backed up and shrugged. "You're probably the only one who even has close to a real chance of achieving that feat without being killed."

Vegeta could not believe it. She was serious. She and Kakarot were _both_ crazy for trusting him. He just didn't get it. But if she was giving him these offerings, he wasn't going to say no.

"If you can beat the androids with your own strength, that would be best, and if that's the case, please bring the deactivator back."

"Of course I'll beat them," Vegeta snapped, glaring at the woman once more. "I'm the Prince of all Saiyans. No _androids _can beat me!"

Bulma nodded as she would to a temper-ridden child. "I know. But if you can't, I am going to ask you this. Please. For all our sakes, use the deactivator. That way we can get you stronger and you can face the androids back in your own time." Before Vegeta could butt in with a series of undoubtedly colorful statements, Bulma held up one finger and said, "I, for one, think you ought to consider it, since after fighting the androids once, you will have picked up their fighting styles and then can have an advantage to show Goku in your time. Otherwise, you very well might die here and in the afterlife listen to how, once again, Goku defeated the nasty androids and was the infallible hero again."

She knew just what buttons to push, all right. With some effort, Vegeta managed to not smash the devices in his clenched fists as he thought about Bulma's words. The woman really had a point. He couldn't stand it if that low-level Saiyan outdid him…again… If it turned out he wasn't strong enough yet, then he would use the stinking device.

He turned on one heel, heading back towards the entrance.

"Wait!" Bulma yelled, starting to reach for him and catching herself. "Can you tell me how you got here? The time machine holds only one person."

To Bulma's surprise, Vegeta laughed, a sound she had not heard in far too long. She frowned, not sure what a Vegeta this young would have done to make him laugh, but sure it wasn't good.

He stopped and without turning around, said, "Ask your _self_ to take a look at the _modifications _she made to the time machine."

And without another word, he slipped out of the doorway, leaving Bulma standing, bruised and with one hand still outstretched in a silent plea towards the Saiyan Prince.


	7. First Class Seat

Bulma couldn't take it anymore, there'd only been one large crash and then complete silence, with no sign of her older self. Her molars ground together and one of her cherry-red fingernails had been bent from the sheer pressure she was exerting on the arm holds. Terrified question after terrified question raced through Bulma's mind. _Had she been ambushed? Had she been taken in by the androids? Had the device worked? What was taking her so long?!_

She scowled and decided fiercely, "I am _not_ going to let myself die in there!" Picking up her capsules, she turned the engine completely off and opened the door.

It was as she looked up, that she saw the strangest of images.

_Vegeta_ walked calmly out of the doorway with two electronic devices in his hands. The deactivator and android tracker. She simply gaped as he smirked that irritating little grin of his and blasted off with a trail of white light trailing behind.

_Vegeta?_ She thought, dazed. _How in the world did Vegeta get here? In this time he's dead. Unless…_ She gulped. _Unless he's…a…ghost?_

"Well, that's two. Possibly four androids down so far," her older voice cut into her thoughts. In her shock, she had not even noticed the older woman walk out of the laboratory.

Stuttering and pointing one finger vaguely in Vegeta's direction, she asked, "Wah—Was that…Was that…?"

Older Bulma put her hands on her hips and stated, "Yeah. That was Vegeta. Looks like he hitched a ride somehow. Typical Saiyan. Goku never managed to get a driver's license either." Before her younger self had a chance to catch up, the older, blue eyes fixed on her. "Speaking of which. You have the time machine with you, I hope."

Assuming the worst, the fiery, young woman turned on herself and stomped a foot stubbornly. "I am _not_ getting sent back now. I won't let you fight those androids alone and I have just as much right to fight as—"

"I'm not sending you back yet!" Bulma shouted to get the annoying voice to stop. It was hard not to lose her temper with the girl, she never thought of _anything _besides herself. _Was I really this bad?_ Bulma asked herself, putting one hand to her forehead and forcing herself to calm down. After a few deep breaths, she managed, "I just need you to open it up and look at what modifications you made to the original system. That's all."

"Oh." The short, blue hair seemed to deflate as the younger girl pulled out a capsule obediently and activated it. In a second, the tiny capsule was replaced by the many legged and golden time machine.

The older woman walked up as if in a trance and reached up one arm tentatively. With shaking fingers, she slowly traced the letters…_H…O…P…E…_

It was so long ago, that she had written this script and waved farewell to her lilac haired, Saiyan son. _So long ago…_

With some difficulty, she pulled herself from the past and forced herself to focus on the matters at hand.

Her younger self was already climbing around on the inside of the ship, banging on one wall here and pushing buttons there.

Just when the older woman was starting to wonder just how many modifications her younger self had made to the tiny ship, there was a undoubtedly colorful and utterly unintelligible set of yells from inside the cockpit followed by a clear, "Vegeta!!! I swear! I'm gonna kill him!!"

One blue eyebrow raised in amusement as Vegeta's soulmate called, "Let me guess, you figured out where the Prince's first class seat was located."

One manicured hand rose over the side of the cockpit and gestured for her friend to come and see for herself. Bulma climbed the ladder, one of the many modifications that had been made to the ship since she had sent Trunks away in it. She folded her arms and rested them on the wall, tilting her head to see around her younger self in the cramped space.

There was a metal grate removed from the wall to the left side of the only seat. Bulma smirked. Yeah, the space looked just big enough for one person to slip in. And if he were strong enough, he could hold the grate in place even during the shifting gravity sequence. "But what did you put there in the first place?" She asked.

The younger woman stood up, brushing dust off of her clothing and indignantly muttered, "Ugh. I should have known. I thought I was just _imagining _his laughter, but no…he actually heard me. Darn it. And I bet he feels so smug right now." She punched the palm of her hand and explained, "I didn't know how long I'd have to stay in that machine. For all I knew, it took a long time to travel through time. So, I rewired a lot of the stuff and made space for my stereo system. That jerk! He probably smashed it. If so, I'm making him pay to use the gravity simulator. See what he thinks of _that_!"

Bulma laughed with nostalgia. It would be quite a while until her younger self realized that she kind of liked to grind her teeth and yell at someone without them backing off. It sure had taken older Bulma quite a while to really miss it after it was gone.

_Oh, Vegeta…_ she thought, turning her head in the direction her heart told her he was in. _For all our sakes, please beat those two…and come back alive...for me._


	8. In Their Eyes

"So, now all we've got to do is figure out how to make a new tracking device," Bulma said, her ponytail whipping her face lightly as she turned back to the house.

Her younger self climbed out of the cockpit. "Sure. But are you crazy?" she asked, jumping down the last few rungs to the ground. "I mean, you did realize that was _Vegeta_ that you gave the device to, right? I mean, this is the one who breaks all of his training equipment _at least_ five times a day."

Bulma sighed, not deigning to answer herself. The young woman would understand soon enough. There were some things in life that were simply inevitable, and the long haired woman believed this particular romance to be one of them.

"Come on," she said instead, walking up to the front doors. "Let's get dinner going."

For not caring about the Saiyan Prince, the younger Bulma sure seemed to be anxious for his safety, the older woman noted with amusement a few hours later. She kept on sitting down and standing up, going to the lab and coming back to the kitchen after just a few minutes. In fact, when she was drumming her fingernails on the top of the table, Bulma could have sworn they'd been chewed on from sheer nerves.

But to be honest, the older woman was nervous for him too. The Vegeta she knew would most likely rather die than use a machine to defeat his enemies and that worried her to no end. And if he did, Trunks would never exist in this time and it would be all her fault for letting him go…

_Fwump._

Bulma jumped up at the tiny noise as if it had been a gunshot and her younger self yelped from the sudden movement. Normally, Vegeta was silent, skilled and in control like a predator. If Bulma was right in thinking that the small sound had been his landing, then he must be in pretty bad shape. Without any warning, the long hair woman rushed out to the front yard as fast as she could manage.

Her breath caught in her throat as she stepped outside. In one second, she took in the collapsed form of the dark haired Saiyan, the blood, the shredded armor…

_It's just like before…how could I let this happen? Why did I let him fight those monsters?_ The older Bulma asked herself, struck in the heart by the horror.

She was so focused on the prone shape before her, that she hadn't noticed the short haired woman next to her until she ran up shrieking, "Vegeta!" The young woman skidded on her knees to his side and shook him somewhat violently.

The Saiyan Prince winced, proving that, somehow, he was still alive.

It didn't register to the young woman that he was in such a bad shape. After all, she'd seen him pretty bad off from his self imposed training anyway. "Stupid!" she yelled from just a few feet away. "Are you _trying_ to get yourself killed?! And what possessed you to come to the future in the first place? You owe me a new stereo, you know!" The young woman glared at Vegeta venomously, her arms crossed.

Vegeta ignored her and tried sitting up, unsuccessfully collapsing back onto the ground. The young woman shrieked, "You're hurt! Stay down."

No one was about to order this Prince around, he tried again and the past Bulma started yelling at him. "You are idiotic. You stubborn, spoiled, pig-headed—"

The dark haired man smirked despite his injuries and retorted, "Surely you are referring to yourself."

The young woman started yelling rather colorful statements at the fallen warrior in earnest. And all the older Bulma could seem to do was smile, a little sadly, but still smile. How she missed those days.

She let them verbally abuse each other for several more moments and got to watch first-had the changes that went on in the two young people's eyes. At first, they really had only been angry with each other, but as each matched the other, blow for blow, it began to change. It was as if they understood each other and respected the other person's strength, the other person's pride.

It was there in the subtle glint of Vegeta's dark eyes and the glitter in Bulma's blue gaze. While the words had not changed in intensity, their intentions had taken a 180.

_It won't be long now…_ the older woman thought, smiling at her own set of memories and walking over to point out to both of them that they could fight to their hearts' content from _inside_ the hospital.


	9. Perfect for Each Other

Bulma took one last look at them as she rested her hand on the doorknob.

It was perfect. Vegeta's eyes were nearly closed slits of obsidian as he tried to fight the effects of the pain medication. But even then, Bulma could see the glimmer that in anyone else, she would openly call love.

The short, blue haired woman's back was to the older woman, but she didn't need to see those eyes to know exactly what look was in them. As if they barely noticed it, their fingers were touching, just barely, on the white, hospital sheets.

_It's starting,_ Bulma thought, closing the door behind her, quietly. She knew how it felt, knew how it was to fall in love, and with that, she knew they would both fall tonight.

Even as it hurt as nothing else could to see herself fall in love with Vegeta, she was happy. Things were how they should be…

She walked into the living room, collapsing on the couch in a pile of exhausted limbs.

_I can't believe Vegeta actually managed to beat the androids…I can't believe they're gone. And Trunks…he would be so proud of his father right now. I wish he could see._

Bulma looked at the photo her son had always loved most of all. The one where she had managed to get Goku and Vegeta to stay in front of a camera for just a moment while she got one picture. The only one she had taken before they died.

It hurt so much to think of all of the missed times, all of the memories that could have been had things been different. Had things been the way they were for the two she had just left back in the recovery room…

Perhaps it was this that made her fists clench and her periwinkle eyes glint with determination. But whatever the thoughts that had crossed her mind, they made her stand up.

Vegeta had not wanted to tell them how he had won against the androids. The only clues were that both devices were gone and shards of the tracker had been blown with considerable force into Vegeta's chest. That was what had taken so long, programming the computer to locate and remove every one of them.

Bulma went to the kitchen and grabbed one of the two deactivators there, pushing it into a small knapsack with a few other items.

She wasn't about to let this love be taken away again. It wasn't fair. Vegeta and Bulma were meant to be together. Trunks should get to know his father. Bulma was not about to let Vegeta go and possibly kill himself trying to beat the last android. She would rather die than let that happen.

Without a sound, she slipped out of the front doors and into the night.

She was going to destroy the last android…herself.

* * *

.

Well, I knew this week would be busy, but I forgot to add in the long car drive, so nevermind. Looks like I'll probably be posting as usual. 

^_^


	10. Chasing Bulma

Bulma stretched luxuriously on the hospital sheets, reveling in the soft movement against her bare skin.

She could not believe it had happened and so fast. It was as if her and Vegeta could not help themselves…as if they were meant to be together.

She looked up at where the Saiyan Prince sat straight-backed on the other edge of the bed. Even seeing him there, made her wish that he was the type to stay with her forever. But she loved him and as such, knew enough to know that he did not attach himself like people such as Goku. He was a free spirit and so was she for that matter.

He didn't seem like he was going to run away, not yet. Although she would not be surprised if he had. What they had done was so emotional that she almost thought the Saiyan Prince would not be able to live with himself. _Heaven forbid royalty such as him do silly things like fall in love._

Even though he was staying close by her, though, Vegeta's stance was that of an animal that had caught a new scent, enticing and slightly alarming. "What's wrong, Vegeta?" Bulma asked, slightly sitting up on one arm.

Now that she could see his face better, she became more concerned. Something in her gut told her that whatever Vegeta was dealing with right then had nothing to do with last night's actions.

Vegeta's frown increased and he slowly articulated, "_Kakarot…_ Kakarot is here."

Bulma raised her eyebrows and practically exclaimed, "Goku's here? In the future?! But how? How in the world could he have gotten here? There's only one time machine!"

Vegeta shook his head, saying, "I don't know. But he is here, of that I'm sure."

_What's going on?_ Bulma asked herself. _How had Goku gotten here? Had someone built another time machine?_

Vegeta gasped, wide-eyed in shock, making Bulma jump out of her skin. His eyes spoke of old fears and before she had the chance to ask, he whispered to himself, "Frieza…?"

Bulma was dumbfounded. She sat straight up, ignoring her bare top and said, "You can't be serious. Somehow you've got to be imagining this. Goku is dead in this time and Frieza is defeated in both timelines. There is just no way possible that they could be anywhere near here."

Ignoring her words, Vegeta got up and began donning his blue under suit.

Bulma got up out of bed, "Vegeta!" She rushed over to him and grabbed one arm with both of hers. "You can't!"

He shoved her off, gently for him, but rough enough to send her flying to the floor. "Don't tell me what I can and can't do, woman!" He grabbed the white and gold armor, slipping it over his dark head.

Bulma started crying, hurt from the only one who could ever get to her like this. "You don't care about me… just your stupid fighting."

Vegeta perched on the window sill ready to fly off, but he paused.

Bulma could not bear to look at him, but she heard his voice, calm and comforting. "If I cared nothing for you or your future, I would stay here."

Without further explanation, Vegeta blasted off, leaving Bulma stunned and perplexed on the hard, recovery room floor. She forced herself to get up, to move her wobbly legs and open the door.

It was only as she stepped out into the empty hall that she became aware that this wasn't really her house. Or rather, not really her time.

She walked to the kitchen, noticing a feeling of wrongness in the pit of her stomach as she did so. Nothing was cooking, in fact, it looked as though her older self had hardly been down at all while her and Vegeta had been together.

_Of course!_ Bulma thought to herself. _Of course she would have known! She probably fell in love with Vegeta too!_

Knowing this, she smiled to herself, picking up her bag off of the table to tidy up a bit. It was as she lifted the handles that she noticed its lightness. _Something's missing._

She set the bag down and stuffed her other hand inside to feel around. _Capsule case…make-up bag…hairspray…deactivator…deactivator…_ She rapidly swiped her hand around the contents again. _Where's the third deactivator?_ She flipped the contents out on to the table, thinking, _Vegeta couldn't have taken it. He flew off too fast. _But it wasn't there. That much was obvious.

Then with a clenching in her stomach, she thought of the only other person who could have taken it. And with a sinking feeling, thought of the only reason she would have taken a deactivator with her. The older Bulma had gone to find and fight the last android…on her own.

Bulma stuffed the items quickly back into her bag, fighting to not panic. She knew exactly how the older Bulma felt, but this was crazy. Exactly how had she planned on finding the other android? Even a genius of a scientist couldn't build that sort of thing over night.

Her bright blue eyes widened. _But someone else had built a way to track the androids already. She would have realized this. Dr. Gero would have wanted a way to keep tabs on his creations._

Without hesitation, Bulma ran from the house, racing to reach the lab.

Even as her heart told her it was too late.


	11. Cell

_There it is,_ Bulma thought to herself, indulging a twitch of amusement at what Dr. Gero would think if he could see the daughter of his arch enemy now. She had once again broken into the inventor's once-secret lab and proceeded to make herself at home in front of the computer screen.

It was strange. Nothing seemed to be wrong, but her heart gave a little flutter. Perhaps had she been taught in the ways of sensing energy levels, she would have known that what she felt was a Kamehameha wave, followed by a distinct maroon laser in the distance. She also might have sensed as Vegeta powered up to fly towards the maker of these two attacks.

But as it was, she simply shrugged the bad feeling off and let her hands move naturally across the keyboard, siphoning through the myriads of Dr. Gero's computer programs.

_He must have had a program to track these things. Now if I could just find it…_ She frowned at the computer screen.

Suddenly as if a switch had been turned, Bulma stopped typing and gasped. It wasn't what she had been looking for, but she had stumbled upon something just about as useful, if not more so.

Every piece of data on every single android Dr. Gero had ever made. Right up to Android 20 and even one called "Cell."

Bulma opened up that particular folder and scanned it quickly, reading the facts on what was undoubtedly the most heinous of creations she had seen.

This monster was made up of the cells of the greatest fighters on Earth, including Goku and Vegeta, and looked to be completely made of organic material. Bulma looked down at her bag, thinking of how that meant that if this last android was indeed this "Cell" then the deactivator was completely useless.

And if that was the case, they would need all the information they could get in order to beat him. Bulma's hands flew once more across the keyboard, sending the folders of the Android information to an informal network she had set up between there and Capsule Corp.

The transfer seemed to be working, but it would take quite some time to fully send. Bulma didn't waste a second, finding the tracking program within minutes after she had begun.

It seemed to be functional, all right. She wasn't sure which clue came first, the position of the little blinking light on the screen or the soft hiss of a pleased monster coming from right outside, but either way, Bulma knew what that meant.

_He was here…Cell…_

The transfer wasn't complete. It still needed over a minute. Not long in the scheme of things, but Bulma highly doubted that the android would wait. And without that data, they might still lose.

Bulma's nails dug into her fists and her periwinkle eyes narrowed. _I won't let that happen!_ She decided, getting up and grabbing her bag.

Bravely putting one foot in front of the other, she marched out, eyes set on the insectoid smiling before her.

He hissed in a voice to send chills up one's spine, "You know that you have no chance to win against me."

Something about the way he taunted the older woman, made her stronger than she would have otherwise been. Like royalty in front of scum. She lifted her chin slightly and said, "I know that."

His stinger endowed tail flicked with amusement and he continued, "So, you will still fight me? Even though I can crush you without even trying?" His slitted eyes darted back and forth between Bulma's blue ones.

She stepped forward, shortening the distance between them. It was only then, as she moved that she saw what the android could not. Vegeta was there, back in the trees, watching this match.

In that split second her heart leapt up with joy and was torn apart with horror. _He's not supposed to be here. What if he gets killed?_

She gritted her teeth and spoke once again to the android in front of her. "I believe that every creature should be free to fight. That's why," she growled, feeling the rage building within her. "I know I am not the strongest and never have been." Bulma took another step forward, now just a few meters away from the creature, but her voice rang out loud and clear. "In fact, I have no chance of ever comparing to the strength of Vegeta, or that our son. But I want to have my chance to fight. I would rather die trying than cower behind anyone else!"

She spared a glance at the Prince and saw something that she had never expected to see. Disdain she expected. Anger she almost would have guaranteed.

But in those deep, obsidian eyes, she saw that he was impressed by her decision. He was proud of her. Bulma's heart soared and she gave a little smile despite her situation.

"So, you two had a son? Interesting. What is his name?" Cell's voice cut into her happiness with the force of a Kamehameha wave.

Yet, she wasn't about to back down. Bulma spat on the ground at the monster's clawed feet, clearly stating her intentions.

Cell twitched his tail once more and smirked. "You think that I cannot sense you, Vegeta? Aren't you curious what your son's name will be, just as I am?"

Vegeta and Bulma both froze where they stood. _So, he knew._

"Well," Cell rasped in that disgusting voice of his. "If she won't tell me, I certainly won't let you know either." He lifted up one splayed hand and before either human or Saiyan could move, Bulma's body was blasted backwards into the mountain and through the open lab doorway.

Bulma skidded across the floor and saw as Cell shot an energy blast right over her head. This was it. She watched as the ceiling crumbled and the weight of an entire mountain rushed to meet her.

There was no way out. She screamed and covered her head, waiting for the impact to kill her.


	12. Last Moment

The pain was blinding.

It felt as though her legs were being ripped in two. Everything else hurt, but her legs…she tried to move them and screamed.

_Okay, Bulma, so that was a bad idea._ The blue haired woman clenched her teeth and chided herself, _You know better…think, and then act. That's what makes you the brains of this outfit. Think._

She took two cleansing breaths, ignoring the meaningless shouts around her. She needed to think, but Kami, it all hurt so badly. How could she be alive with this pain?

_Wait._ Her brain caught up with events. Cell. Vegeta. The blast that threw her here. The rocks flying down at her…_ How can I be alive, period?_

Bulma had to know. She opened her eyes, forcing her vision to focus.

Then she saw, and understood with a distinct plummet to her stomach.

Vegeta was standing over her, holding up the entire mountain on his own by the looks of it. His limbs were shaking, his forehead was beaded with sweat. With cries he could not control, he took every blast that Cell lazily tossed in his direction, unable to dodge in any way or Bulma would be crushed.

She looked at Cell and was sickened by that expression. It was as though he was mildly curious or amused at just how much the Saiyan Prince could take. It was evil.

The blue hair, loose from her usual ponytail shook from a combination of pain and rage. She wanted to stand, wanted to help Vegeta. Hadn't she come here to fight and save the very person that was now saving her? But no matter how she tried, her body would not move.

It was her legs. She swallowed down the bile that threatened to come out of her mouth. She had to look down. She just had to force herself to see what was wrong with them.

Bulma managed it, turning just enough to see... to see… _Oh…oh, no…_

Vegeta was holding up the mountain, but before he had managed to catch it, two sheets of rock and metal had already fallen on Bulma's legs. The only reason she was not dead already was the various tables that had been smashed next to her took some of the pressure off.

_But still,_ she winced. _They're definitely done for. I'll be in a wheelchair if I actually manage to make it out of this mess alive._

"You…" Vegeta growled, taking another golden blast from Cell. "Me…and that woman…you…" He ground his teeth. "You knew!"

Bulma nodded, understanding his pain even as she knew her reasons for not telling him. The fact that she knew what was going to happen between them made it so that Vegeta did not have a choice in the matter. It took away the only thing besides his strength that really made life worth living. His agency.

Vegeta snarled in response to her confirmation and took another blow. They didn't have too long left. Bulma could see the Prince's shaking increasing.

As if he sensed their predicament, Vegeta responded in a voice much softer than normal. "What is his name?" Still in a gentle growl, he closed his eyes. "My son. What is his name, woman?"

Bulma couldn't help but smile, despite everything. Even though he would never admit it, Vegeta would be proud to be a father. And given the chance she believed he could learn to be a good one, even if he was a little rough around the edges.

Her eyes rolled from the pain in her legs, but she whispered, "Trunks. "

Just then, a Kamehameha wave hit Vegeta full force and he was knocked down to his hands and knees, the entire mountain resting on his heaving shoulders.

Bulma screamed despite herself, as blood dripped from her mouth. Her legs were compacted, literally compressed. As well as much of the rest of her frail body.

She knew this was the end. Even if Vegeta could have lifted the entire laboratory, her body was crushed, bones piercing lungs and stomach. This was it. Her last few minutes.

Vegeta could sense it too. He had failed, even as he had gained the name of his son.

Bulma looked over to the man she loved and started to force the words out, "Vegeta, I will always love you."

She coughed, knowing this was her last chance to speak to her son as well and forcing her body to go on beyond mortal limits.

"Trunks…he's our son. Tell Trunks…tell him, I love him. Tell him…" She coughed up a spurt of blood and spit it out onto the ground.

She had to let her son know that it was right for him to stay in the past, that happiness was the right path for him and to not grieve. But her body would not allow her. She knew she only had a few words left.

She gasped from the pain, but forced out, "Tell…Trunks…" She struggled for that last breath and got enough, just enough to manage, "Follow…his…heart…"

Bulma was barely aware of anything or anyone. It would all be over in a moment. She could no longer breathe. In some far off world, she felt as her lungs were crushed underneath the weight pinning her chest.

_Trunks…_ she called and her head fell limply to one side as darkness over took everything she knew.


	13. Free to Fight

"NO!" She screamed, feeling it catch in her voice.

She could not believe it.

It couldn't be true. It couldn't!! Bulma could not be dead.

But her heart had known what her mind had told her before. She was too late.

Vegeta would never have given up, have dropped the ceiling like that unless… unless… the person he was trying to save was dead.

She could not believe it. Would not believe that Bulma had died. Not now.

The pain was too much to bear. It was like losing a sister, a best friend, a very part of herself. She screamed, slamming her fists on the steering wheel of her capsule car and denting it.

The tears flowed freely from her face as she continued to punch everything in sight. She tore up the seats, breaking her nails on the hard plastic. She ripped up her bag, she smashed her capsule case. But nothing would ease the pain.

_It's just not fair!!!_

A scream that was not her own cut through her misery, shocking her to the very core. _Vegeta…_

He yelled and yelled. Consumed with his own pain, shaking with the injustice, the anger, the inability to stop Bulma from dying.

It was too much to bear. Something had to give.

Bulma gasped, watching from the hovercraft as there was a flicker of gold. _Had Vegeta's hair been blonde?_

He shook as if possessed, face turned to the ground. "_I will not let you get away…with…this!"_ The flicker of gold came back, flaring around him as he yelled once again, "I won't let you get away with this!!"

It was then. Golden fire was a conflagration of light, spinning and leaping about his body. The once ebony spikes had lightened almost blindingly and when Vegeta raised his head, those eyes, so full of pain, were solid teal.

He had done it. He had transformed into a Super Saiyan. _But at what cost?_ Bulma thought, remembering the body still lying under the mountain.

Bulma wasn't even sure if Vegeta was aware of his transformation, he was so consumed in his rage. All she knew was that this android did not stand a chance against him now.

The Galick Gun that Vegeta shot obliterated every bit of the green monster. _Probably right down to the cellular level,_ Bulma thought, wondering if just maybe Vegeta had overdone it a bit. _Oh well. For what that creation had done, there was no punishment even a Super Saiyan could dish out that would be enough._

The android was gone, yet the damage remained.

As if in a trance, Bulma got out of the car and walked over to the collapsed entrance to the mountain. _She's down there…somewhere…I'm down there…_

Even though she had no chance of making a dent in the rubble or saving her future self, she began, slowly to remove the rocks. Her tears flowed freely from her blue eyes and her hands shook, but still she kept going. _One rock at a time. That's it, Bulma. One stone at a time…_

It took her a while to realize she was not alone in her task. Vegeta, golden haired and all, had come and began tossing aside slabs of ceiling with ease. Before long, between them, they had uncovered their close friend.

Her blue hair was splayed across the ground, many parts covered in her own blood. The effect was heart breaking, creating streaks of violet among the blue.

Vegeta's hair faded once again to black as he looked down at the woman's body.

Though younger Bulma could not have known what his thoughts were on, for once they were indeed on the long haired woman. They were on that last moment…those last things she had said to him. "_Vegeta, I will always love you. Trunks…he's our son. Tell Trunks…tell him, I love him. Tell him. Follow…his…heart…"_

Vegeta was a man of his word and in Saiyan culture the last wish or wishes of a dying warrior were the most important. Though he had not promised before she had died and though she was not a Saiyan, there was no doubt that in heart at least, she was a warrior. He would find their son and tell him all she had asked him to.

Bulma sobbed, great tear streaks running down her face. "It's not fair! I never got to ask! I never got to ask!"

Vegeta turned towards the perplexing blue haired woman, folding his arms and scowling once more. "Ask what, woman?"

She hiccupped and blinked, once again remembering she was not alone. She wiped her face, leaving a rainbow of dirt upon her cheeks. "I never got to ask her about us. About you and me," she answered softly.

Vegeta turned away from the crying female, so she could not see his face, but it didn't matter, his words were enough. "She knew about us. And seemed to think it was the right thing."

Bulma perked up slightly, heart lightening, "Really? How do you know?"

Vegeta shrugged and said, "Apparently we will have a son." He continued in order to avoid acknowledgement of Bulma's gasp. "His name is Trunks and I am to give him a message when I find him."

Bulma nodded, somehow not as shocked by this knowledge as she would have thought. Perhaps she had changed in this world, perhaps the strength had been with her all along, but either way, she knew that coming here had been the right choice.

Vegeta glanced back at the woman he loved and said, "Do not grieve for her." He turned to look at the sky, a grayish blue, and said, "She got what she wanted her whole life. Now, finally in the next world, she will be free."

Together Bulma and Vegeta nodded and spoke as one, "…free to fight."

* * *

.

So, tell me what you think. All right? Too mushy? Too dramatic? You name it.

Phwew. Now it's on back to Goku and Trunks.

If you want to follow along, the next and final part is called "Learn to Live."

Which is now up and running.

^_^


End file.
